The world of climbing can be overwhelming for a beginner. Imagine a scenario where you are talking to climbers who are a bit more experienced at climbing. They are throwing around climbing terms that you have no idea about. One term caught your interest because of how often it was repeated: redpointing or redpoint climbing.
So what is redpoint climbing? Invented by one of the pioneers of competitive climbers Kurt Albert who coined the term. It was named after a German kettle brand which had a red dot on it to signify that Albert had completed the climb. He forever changed the way of climbing through redpointing. If you are a beginner or someone that wants to brush up on their knowledge about climbing terms, then take this rite of passage to the world of climbing.
Key Takeaways
- Redpoint climbing was invented by Kurt Albert, who set up what modern redpoint climbing looks like.
- Redpoint and headpoint are very similar, but the way they are practiced and executed are different from each other.
- What is considered to be an on-sight or a flash really depends on how truthful you are to yourself, regardless of what others say about your climb.
What is Redpoint Climbing?
In short, redpoint climbing is a competitive free climb in that you already have prior knowledge (or the beta) of a certain climb where you have practiced the routes before sending it. It doesn’t matter how many times you have it practiced, redpointing is all about studying the climb before finally completing it.
What Redpoint Climbing Looks Like?
As with competitive climbing, redpointing also has some ways that make it unique from other free climbing. Compared to other climbs, the rules are pretty standard on redpointing. Other types of free climbs are more concerned about ethics than the rules really.
After your first failure
The first time you fail a route, everything after is known as redpoint climbing. The first climb has its own special term to it that we will come to later. But it is okay to fail a climb. Climbing a route without knowing anything about it can be difficult as the routes and what techniques you have to apply are completely unknown to you. Even if you hang on to your climbing gear, it is considered a failed climb. This is because you are not really free climbing at that point, rather relying on your gear to assist you.
Quickdraw placements
How many quickdraws can you place for a redpoint without it being considered a traditional climb? That is up for debate among climbers. Basically, quickdraws are placed to make sure that a climber is safe, with their rope making sure to break their fall. For redpointing, you are allowed to place the quickdraws.
However, some consider that you can only put quickdraws on certain sections of the climb which are considered more difficult. Others will say it is fine to put the quickdraws where ever you feel like. The answer is it doesn’t really matter! Redpoint climbs are basically practice climbs until you get to the last point. The most accepted placements are for difficult sections of the climb, where you will attach your rope to the quickdraw as you go along.
Resting during redpoint climbs
The whole point about redpoint climbs is they are practice. The final climb will be the one that you send climb without falling or resting on your gear. Kneebars are acceptable. This is where you are resting using your knees and hands and not your gear. Because you are not using your gear to rest your body, kneebars are acceptable. So acceptable that it might be impossible to climb without having a rest between climbs.
Difficulty ratings that are above 5.10 on the Yosemite Scale (6a+ and above on the French scale) have a lot of difficult movements. For that, resting between certain sections is acceptable, even often advised. This is because the next part could be considered a very difficult section and you need to be on top of your game to be able to get through it.
How a redpoint climb ends?
There is only one way that a redpoint climb ends: when you attach your rope to the very last quickdraw of the free climb. Not only that, you have to send the climb cleanly. That means without falling once or resting on your gear. The moment you fall during your climb, that is it for that send. You need to take off all the ropes from your quickdraws, go back to the very beginning and start all over again.
It doesn’t matter if you are at the very end of the climb and fall right before you clipped the last quickdraw, if you fail you are right back to the very beginning. A send without falls or resting on gear would be considered a successful redpoint climb.
Redpoint vs Headpoint
Both redpoint and headpoint climbs are where you have practiced the route. The difference is how you have practiced the route itself. For redpoints, you climb from the bottom to the top and that is where you start your practice as well. However, headpoint climbing is where you have a top rope to sort of help you learn the climb. As you are headpointing, you take mental notes of where your hands and legs go and what grip you are to use. You can mark the route with chalk. Finally, when you are ready, you climb the route without the top rope or any of the gear attached to the section.
It is an understatement to say that headpointing is one of the hardest if not the hardest free climbing you can do. There are no quickdraws (while for some headpoints you can have pre-placed quickdraws) and pure climbing techniques during your solo that is taking you up. You risk injury, which adds to the psychological difficulty of headpointing. Most headpoints are for climbs that are straight up.
What is On-sight and Flash Climbing?
On-sighting a climb is where you have no prior knowledge of the route. It is practically the first time ever that you are climbing the route and you have to work out the route by yourself. You are allowed to use belayers and place gear as you climb up, but if you fall or rest on your gear it’s done. Anything after that is considered redpoint climbing.
Flash climbing is a bit different, where you are allowed to be told about the climb by another climber. It is also your first time you are climbing it but you have just enough knowledge for it to be familiar.
The problem with on-sight and flash climbing are how much are you supposed to know the route where it can’t be considered either. Does knowing that the last few meters of the climb are difficult enough constitute it to be flash climbing? At the end of the day, it all comes down to how ethical and truthful you are to yourself. While others may disregard an on-sight because someone told you about the rating, if you believe it to be an on-sight then it does not matter.
FAQs
What is the hardest climb in the world?
Adam Ondra’s ascent of the Silence and Alex Megos’s ascent of Bibliographie are both considered to be the hardest climbs to date. Both are rated at 9c by their respective climbers, but as they have not been climbed by anyone else, the rating is unconfirmed.
What is pinkpoint or pinkpointing?
Pinkpointing is where you have the whole route roped and climb it using the rope as a guide. Because of its unpopular nature, no one does or remembers much about pinkpoint climbing. Very few older generations of climbers might remember it.
Is redpointing safe to do?
Redpoint is considered to be one of the safest forms of climbing because your rope holds you up when you fall. However, redpoint or not, free climbing is still considered to be dangerous, especially on difficult routes.
Final Thoughts
For sports climbing, redpoint has become the norm to do before you send the climb without falling or resting on your gear. This has made the climbing scene safer and more accessible. Without Kurt Albert’s ingenious climbing technique (and his water heater of course), the world of climbing would look a whole lot different, where stars like Adam Ondra and Alex Megos might have not been climbers at all. Redpoint climbs are here to stay, and if you are a beginner, now you know what your climbing buddies are talking about.
